The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-11-25
FREIGHT BLOCKADE.
GREATER FACILITIES ARR NEEDED
tho Proper Handling of Freight Ship.
ped or Received Here over tho b.. o.
naiirond-Hsroic Measures Adopted
in One Cause.-The Union Bridge.

Thoao persons complain without cause,
who, In these busy times grumble and
complain because, a. they put 1t, Whoel-
ing ia making no progress while other
towns, not so sdvantageously located, are
booming and being advertised 40 booming
centres. The people who talk thus do
not know what they gro talking about,
and as much attention should be paid 10
thoir ~ctoakings rs to the winds. Wheel.
Ing 10 making progress, and rapid progress,
too; but ehe makes no loud boasts Of
what she Is and what Bho 10 doing, and
this, coupled with the dismal talk OF the
diacontented ones, ut timea leads many to
believe TINT II 10 q verltable truth that the
town Is In the old rut still, and that her
progreas Ia 30 blow as TO be imperceptible.
The lN~TELJiGgScER recently published
In detail, tho amount Of work In the way
Of new building and noticeable repairing
that has been done here in the past year,
together with q rough estimate of the
amount paid out Tor thst work. Tho
statements made and figures given we,o
in tho nature OF q surprise TO nearly every
one. That article wa an argument going
to provo concluslyely that Wheeling Ia
growing.
Other arguments fully as strong and
convincing arc 10 DO found every day by
those who will tako the trouble to open
their eyes and look about them. One Of
the strongest arguments is to ba found
right in the heart OF thu city-at The rail-
road freight houses and on the eide tracks.
1t Is q positive fact that Wheeling
has grown to euch an extent that
her railroad facilities are not
equal to her wants. Especially Is
this true with reference to tho Baltimore
& Ohio road. For over o month past th0ro
has been an almos! continual blockade OF
freight on the tracks OF that road In this
city, and the matter has gotten to be auch
q serious one to shippers and those in
want OF goods from other points, that there
a actually talk Of calling a special
meeting Of the Chamber OF Commerce for
last night for tho purpose OF ascsrtaining
il some means oil relief could not be de.
| vised. Had it not been for tho fact that
1t was Thanksgiving night the meeting
would probably have been held,
There has not been q day for some time
past that the Baltimore & Ohio freight
offices have not bsOu visited by business
men imploring that the blockade be lifted
sufficiently to allow them to get their cara
unloaded. Alter imploring they would
"Cuss." The Baltimore & Ohio has been
condemned in q dozen tongues in the past
two weeks by business msn here.
Wednesday d wholesale grocerymau,
who had had the manifest for q cor load Of
sugar in his Office for nino dsyn, having paid
/! the freight, proceeded to read tho riot set.
| He wanted that sugar, and he wanted 1t
bad. He made himself 90 clearly under
stood that finally an engine WIS pu: at his
disposal. His car was found on a side
track away over on the South Side, and
after much emitting and shouting and
swearing. WHs pulled out and up the freight
houae. II forty minutes il had been ur-
loaded, and in forty more it was loaded up
again with goods to be sent out, and taken
down the road 10 form a part OF the gen.
eral blockade again.
That grocerynan's nerve has since then
been the envy Of tho busine5s community.
Some forty odd men employed in
building the West Virginia Pottery Com
pany's works in North Wheeling ara en-
foIcsd to stand idle on account OF want of
materials. The stuff is here, but the cars
on which it is are in the blockade. Other
business firms arc being similarly discom-
NODDED. Nor are tho business men the
only oIos who arc DISCONNECTED. The
travelling public, especially that part OF it
that 10 forced to ride on the Baltimore &
Ohio bstwesn here eud Benwood, feels
the Inconvenience and joins the business
men in tho protane chorus. II is now no
unusual thing Tor q passenger train to be
an hour coming from Benwood here.
Frei2hts get ahead OF i. aud behind it.
and the tracks On both sides are full OF
care. The blockade actually extends to
BenHood.
AL Of this lie but the nstural result Of q
eteEdy growth Of the trade of Wheeling,
There have been additional switchea and
tracks built, but not enough. The Balti.
moro & Ohio employees here to a man,
from the head down to the moat unim.
portant, arc oil working their best, but
tho task is too great for them.
a prominent buainess man opeakiue of
this matter yesterday, md complaining of
the Inconvenience he had suffered by
reason OF the existing state Of affairs, said:
Il am ready to vote and work for a
proposition by which the city shall pro.
vide money to help construct q union
bridge and n belt railroad. The one is no
good without the other. We have reached
a point where vi must have more outlets.
and that secured, We musthave the means
OF getting cara in close proximity 10 all
our manufacturing concerns. Something
must bs done in the near future"
THE POLICIES nav